Data transfer to Facebook partners

Facebook partners had access to private messages

2018 was the year of data leaks. Shortly before the end of the year, it became apparent that Facebook partners had access to private messages and data. The reason was because of an extensive data transfer from Facebook.

We will clarify what has caused this and who exactly has received user data from Facebook.

2018 – the year of data leaks and data breaches

Rarely have the media reported so often on data breaches and data leaks as in the year 2018. One reason for this is that there have been several major data scandals this year at companies such as Facebook, Amazon and Google. On the other hand, the entry into force of the new EU General

The social media platform Facebook in particular attracted attention this year with numerous data leaks. From the Cambridge Analytica data scandal and the resulting #deletefacebook campaign to the latest data breach where hackers want to sell your Facebook data. It was not a good year for privacy for Facebook.

It was not a good year for Facebook for data privacy (Image: pixabay.com/Simon)

Again, data sharing with Facebook partners

At the end of last year, Facebook was hit again. A New York Times report shows that the social media platform has passed on user data to its many Facebook partners on a large scale. The piquant thing was that after the Cambridge Analytica data scandal, Facebook had changed its privacy policy for linking to third-party apps, which should prevent exactly that.

In fact the new accusation against Facebook is not the first time that the company has been criticised for unauthorised data transfer. As early as the summer of 2018 it became known that smartphone manufacturers, including Apple and Samsung, had illegally received user data from Facebook without permission.

In the new case, other Facebook partners such as Spotify, Amazon and Netflix also gained access to your personal data. This also includes access to private messages that you have sent via Facebook. Overall, 150 external Facebook partner companies received data from the social media platform.

Data transfer even after access deleted

These are mainly technology companies, but also media organisations and representatives from the automotive industry who received data from Facebook. The data from hundreds of millions of Facebook users was read out every month.

The data that the individual Facebook partners were able to view varies from case to case. While some companies were able to see the names of all Facebook users, for example, through data sharing, others could access private messages or various account information.

A particular problem here is that in some cases companies still had access to the data. Even when data transfer had long since been switched off. How the data was further used is also not completely known. Facebook explains that no Facebook partner would have misused the user data passed on. Nevertheless, it is clear that individual companies such as Amazon could use the data for advertising purposes or personalisation, among other things.

Data sharing – what does Facebook say

Data sharing involves so-called data deals between the social media platform and Facebook partners dating back to 2010. However, some of these were still valid in 2017 and 2018 – even though the corresponding interfaces had already been deactivated in 2014.

Actually, the interfaces were intended to enable users from other platforms to contact their Facebook friends. However, Facebook passed on sensitive data without the user’s consent. Even though the incident may not be a data scandal in the true sense of the word, one thing is certain: users’ trust in Facebook continues to suffer.

How do you see it? Are you still using Facebook or have you already looked for an alternative? Let us know in our comments.